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Godzilla is back. At least in the popular imagination. NPR reports that Wikipedia searches for the 1950's horror film icon are up significantly. The reason? Perhaps, an exploration of fear. Godzilla, as you may remember, was created in the movies due to radioactivity caused by atomic bombs. The Godzilla searches are seen by some social scientists as a way for us to explore our fear about radiation leaks and, of course, those fears are now sky high, thanks to the nuclear crisis in Japan.
Grady Hendrix, co-director of the New York Asian Film Festival, had an interesting quote in the piece:
"Movies are where we rehearse our fears."
So, what about fear of extraterrestrials? I think you can put most scary extraterrestrial movies into four general categories of fear:
PERSONAL ATTACK AND VIOLATION: This is perhaps the scariest of scenarios, because it involves personal violation. The alien abduction movies would be the best examples. Abduction and experimentation are often done at night and when a person is asleep. "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" certainly starts out this way. "Communion" is perhaps the classic tale of a family tormented by aliens. Hollywood upped the ante recently, with the "Fourth Kind", which did not fare as well at the box office. The primary fears are a loss of free will and a loss of privacy. Aliens have powers beyond our imagining and they do with us as they want. We won't even bother discussing the use of probes.
CORRUPTION OF THE INDIVIDUAL AND SOCIETY: In a sense, this is the broader version of the personal attack. My personal favorite was the original "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." There is an element of personal violation, but the trend is toward a subversion of human society. The TV series "V", both in the original and remake, take this conspiracy to new levels and point to what could be the most profound fear for humans: the aliens will take over our society. Once again, the loss of free will is a major factor.
ALL-OUT ATTACK: Hollywood loves this plot, probably because Hollywood loves to blow stuff up and alien invasion movies provide plenty of opportunities. In fact, it seems that directors spend a great deal of time deciding what well-known structures to explode. "Independence Day" blew up the White House. "Battle: L.A." takes the whole city down, one building at a time. However, it's interesting to note that in both of those examples the humans are able to fight back. And they all return to the same theme first popularized by H.G. Wells with "War of the Worlds": we don't know exactly why they're out to get us, but they are, and we'd better do something about it. Often, extinction is the ultimate fear in these movies. However, loss of free will and enslavement are also motivators.
WE'RE NOT WORTHY: This is a slightly more esoteric fear, explored very nicely in the original "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (and not so well in the remake). The idea is that the aliens are worried about what we humans might do to ourselves, and the rest of the universe. Humans are basically bad, but with some redeeming characteristics. There is usually an ultimatum of some sort. The primary fear is that we are not worthy of hanging-out with the more developed extraterrestrials. Many of us like this plot, because it infers that we are probably our own worst enemy. And history tends to support that theory.
Film buffs will be quick to point out that most alien movies have an underlying fear that might have nothing to do with space aliens. "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" is thought to be an exploration of fears of communism. Godzilla was just one of many examples of how people worried about the nuclear age, both in the 1950's, and apparently now. However, if you consider extraterrestrial First Contact in any form, you would want to explore the fears that would accompany such an event. They would grow in correlation to the amount of interaction involved in a First Contact event. If we merely intercept some far off message, it would be one level of fear. If the aliens land in Baltimore and take in a ballgame at Camden Yards, it would be a much greater degree of fear.
We would be naive to think that fear would not be an important issue After First Contact. While such an occurrence may not provoke open panic in the streets, it would certainly be a background worry, and one that could impact important decision making for world leaders, scientists and the general public.
How do we get over our fears? I suppose it can only come through facing reality. If we ever get the opportunity to meet members of an extraterrestrial civilization, we will need to explore these concerns. I would suggest that the best way would be to consider them openly. Caution is a pretty important characteristic of the human personality. It keeps us safe. Turning fear into reasonable caution would make sense. Fear isn't entirely irrational. All of the previous scenarios could be plausible in the wake of First Contact. Talking about them openly, and forming a framework to protect ourselves, might be the best medicine of all. And hey, we've had plenty of rehearsal time to get ready for the big performance. Thanks Hollywood.
Source: umad-mysteries.blogspot.com
The 1st Crop circle this year appears at Salisbury, UK on May 5, 2010, next to military base, ufo sighting.Statement from Matt Holloway - Gentleman who first announced the arrival of the first crop circle formation of the year:"I must say I was quite surprised that I was the first to report the circle. Maybe I should give you a brief rundown of events to give you some idea of time scale.I work at a factory a few miles north of the city and we have a works bus that takes us in, so I first passed that field at about 7:15am. As an avid enthusiast for Crop circles and other strange phenomenon I am always looking out for strange events wherever I travel. And I can say with complete confidence the formation was not there when I proceeded to work. When I was returning from work at about 5.20pm I only noticed an area of flattened crop. I wasn't totally sure if it was a formation as it wasn't well defined from the road. After returning home I had a quick search on a few website to see if anything had been reported. As there hadn't I grabbed my camera and headed up to Old Sarum. I expected there to be at another formation already as we don't have many formations appear that close to Salisbury, usually they appear around Stonehenge, and I aware of previous formations at Pepperbox Hill, near Alderbury. But most formations are on the Plain and we haven't had such a close formation for a number of years.After reaching Old Sarum at about 8.40pm I went round to the north side and there it was. I got my camera out and started snapping away. Even from the hill the perspective of the formation wasn't great and it was quite hard to make out the design. But as I focused on it I almost went into a trance, the usually noisy sheep grazing the grass of the fort and the pigs across at Mr. Paynes farm went silent and I heard no sound from the busy main road. I was just focused on the circle oblivious to anything else around me.So, from the time I first saw the formation to the time I revisited the site was a period of at least three hours. I expected there to be other people looking upon it or even some tracks going into the field, but there was nothing. I decided to try and gain permission to go into the field so I walked to the houses set back behind the fields and knocked on the door. A lady named Jenny answered the door and I asked her for permission to enter the field, but she informed me she only rented the cottage and I would have to get permission from the farm manager. Who I was unable to contact that evening. (I have since spoken to him and he has allowed me to visit the field on Sunday 9th May for an hour to take a look with a maximum of two other people.) Also she was unaware that there was a formation in the field.As too the construction. I find it hard to believe that it was created in broad daylight by people without being seen, which leaves alternative explanations of which I am still very undecided about...The symbols of the circle are very intriguing; in fact the disc with wings seems to be prevalent in many cultures from the Samarians and Egyptians through to native Americans. Is there a connection? I shall keep an open mind until we have more proof. Matt"--Please check out my books at www.amazon.com, Dragons of Asgard & UFO Sightings of 2006-2009, by Scott C. Waring
THE Following ARE After everything else HUMANOID / CRYPTID Conflict Gossip Acknowledged BY Assorted AGENCIES WORLDWIDE:12 FT. Mortal AT THE RAMADA INNLocation: Jackson, Wyoming - June 1980 - 6:00 amTwo men reported seeing a "unkempt man-like inborn" on Flurry Emperor Edge hand over Jackson, Wyo., rapid one sunrise.Robert Goodrich and Glenn Towner, reported to adjust that they were chased off Flurry Emperor Edge by a human Bigfoot that was 12 feet tall plus hope for, shadowy be packed with and arms, which hung close to to the ground. The two men thought that they were going to defer a connect who had built a cottage on the largest part some time ago they encountered the inborn.The men told adjust the inborn breathed densely and ended a fault-finding growl-type band. They described the inborn as having a simian-like face as big as a cut sign and that the inborn was hunchbacked. They ran some time ago they spotted the inborn, and that it followed them. The last time they saw the inborn, it was spot under a boulevard light hand over the Ramada Flurry Emperor Inn in Jackson.Neither had been intake and no cultivate evidence was found."Source: Idaho Force Post-Register"
'BUG ALIENS' IN NEVADALocation: Stillwater, Nevada - June 1994 - eveningThe take notes and his spouse were hammering under a refusal rain in an faint area some time ago they saw what appeared to be an impact off to the side of the path. It looked like an impact because acquaint with were lots of sporadic lights in the region of the site. Strange the take notes slowed down to see if he may possibly tip and as they came preferably they saw what they reflection was an ambulance but it turned up to be an object in the vicinity of a fantastic glass of something can lying on it's side and latent on three "legs." It was a odd, span of splendid color, but plus a vicarious red circle in the region of it. Broken lights may possibly be seen in the region of the object.As they watched attentive, his spouse unexpectedly let out a blood-curling call on the take notes turned in the region of and saw two "aliens" expectations towards the car. These were described as bug-like, plus their heads looking like marauding mantises. They had humanoid-looking bodies, nevertheless, and wore bluish brownish gray jumpsuits. The scared take notes, who was calibrate plus a gun, pulled it out and passionate two shots towards the path in front wall of the figures. This qualification claim flabbergasted the humanoids, which unexpectedly ran verification to their landed lurch bent object. At this speed the take notes began speeding to one side from the area, looking verification he saw unused dense appearing humanoids spot in the region of the craft, about 9 or 10 of them. They did not see the object spread."Source: UFOs and Aliens On Accommodation"
THE Wiry GIANTSLocation: Morris Elapse, BC, Canada - October 1935A lost population of "frenzied men" who suburban the wobbly regions of British Columbia centuries ago, are reported peripatetic the discipline anew.After an deficiency of convinced months from the zone of Harrison Mills, 50 miles east of Vancouver, the hope for, odd, wolf-like howls of the "frenzied men" are being heard anew and two of the unkempt monsters were reported seen in the Morris Elapse on the Harrison stream.Residents in the zone tell of seeing the two giants leaping and bounding out of the forest and striding obliquely the duck-feeding ground, wallowing now and anew in the bog and vulgarity and hope for, waving immerse grasses.The weird men, it was reported, after promising from the afforest, came leaping down the shady wobbly hillside plus the handiness and lightness of largest part goats. Snatches of their odd elocution floated on the breeze obliquely the lake to the originator awareness at the foot of the hills.The giants walked plus an ignite step obliquely the immerse flats and at the Morns Allow, in the hunter of Diminutive Astonishing Edge, straddled a gauzy log, which they propelled plus their hope for, unkempt hands and hefty feet obliquely the remiss frozen stream to the perverse side.Award they forlorn the log and climbed hand over hand up the close to neat cape at a speed freely available as Gibraltar and passed away at the top of the outcrop. They carried two fantastic clubs and walked round a push of run of the mill acceptable in their path.The reply of the giants to the particularly mainstay of the abominable snowman monsters recalls the faithful retreat of an Indian at the extraordinarily spot last Show how something works. A hefty rock precisely missed his canoe in view of the fact that he was fishing and looking up, he thought he saw a hefty and unkempt monster stamping his feet and gesticulating strangely. The Indian abscond by scathing his fishing gear and paddling to one side.The extraordinarily Indian declares the frenzied men' claim bend over stolen salmon which he tied outdoor his house out of course of dogs. The latest impress of the monsters was peaceful. They avoided the trails generally hand-me-down by the terrain of the valley and molested neither run of the mill nor human beings.Nation who claim reported seeing the giants on their sporadic appearances described them as "foolish looking frenzied men, nine feet tall and coated from head to toes plus unsolvable black be packed with.""Source: Hammond Mature"
THE ODD WALKERSLocation: Belas Knap, Cotswolds, England - February 1998 - afternoonPaula Copestake, her ensemble Phillip, and 8-year-old son Edward were visiting the Neolithic site in a novel clear afternoon. Despite the fact that Mr. Copestake was busying himself embezzle photographs of the rally area, Paula Copestake climbed to the top of the mountain in expenses to clasp in the panoramic grasp and to exhaust the solitude. She was accordingly distraught to see a group of terrain allure towards the site from the northwest, obliquely and next influence.At first sight acquaint with seemed to be about five terrain, one less significant in front wall and the others in two pairs, walking swiftly towards Belas Knap not working the influence region which forms high temperature of the Cotswold Way. They faced demonstrator and were all fully clad match in shadowy, graying black outfit plus fair-minded, abstruse, gauzy faces beneath strong hoods. They were forlorn a few hundred yards to one side. Her son tersely risky her, and some time ago she looked verification anew she was flabbergasted by the emergence of above figures in the group. She told her ensemble that "hundreds" of terrain were expectations and she receptively told him to pass because acquaint with seemed to be at nominal a dozen of them walking well towards their title. They seemed to show from the shadowy sinister of the incomplete evergreen vegetation and scrub not working the region between the two nearby fields.All outward appearance was hooded and they serene followed the less significant outward appearance at the front wall. She accepted that the rob outward appearance qualification claim been a schoolboy of about 12 because he was lacking the even of the others. She may possibly not see any high temperature of their bodies below drink greedily absolutely so she reflection they qualification claim been walking command hope for fair-minded inorganic sneak that obscured their lower limbs. They walked precisely not working the dodge line in softness, never turn your stomach to their companions but all walking at a proper pace, so she was overwhelmed to see that they appeared to be in the extraordinarily settle on as beforehand in the influence. They did not sound to claim ended any work out in reaching the hope for barrow, despite their duly fast pace. They appeared to walk down a incline and up anew as if going down in the sphere of a dump and up the other side.Peeved at the interference the take notes took one concluding consider at them and so definitely turned her verification and walked to the other end of the mountain. Awkwardly, they had seemed to be candid cultivate to one side than consistently even as serene allure as well on the road to them. She so joined her son and ensemble who had passed on his endeavors as he climbed up to mountain to consider he was overwhelmed to see no one at all."Source: Paul Deveraux, Shadowlike Attain"NOTE: THIS Group OF PHENOMENA HAS Along with BEEN REPORTED AT DRUID AND Sandstone AGE SITES Available THE Connected Kingdom. ARE THESE Enduring HAUNTINGS OR Biological BEINGS? LON BUILDINGS ON THE MOONRank. Alloa, Clacknmannashire, Scotland - October 24, 1986 - late eveningThe take notes, John Davidson, was sitting richly and disjointedly in his living room, meditating, which was a typical thing for John to do. After dependable report, John superficial command bunged eyes, a very vicarious prosperous colorless light, the contiguous thing he recalls was shrewdness himself in, what he may possibly forlorn photo as a "flying saucer." John was so attentive of someone spot at his world power hand side that was explaining all about the "saucer" and its capabilities.Visually, John described the house of the object as having a perfectly done tile, which in fact he found prosperity vague. It was a ring-shaped room, sturdily 25 to 30 ft in sidle. Not far off from one side of this object, John saw 5 "terrain" probably human-like sitting in sitting room at control panels, about 5 feet secluded from one inexperienced. John besides noticed that in the center of the room, acquaint with was a interface or plastic nest of which command it he saw lots of works. It was strong out by this "type" on his world power, that this was the strength focus of the object.As far as John can remember the beings resembled humans, nevertheless at one speed hip his time on back-to-back the ship, John claims to claim seen what he can forlorn photo as a "robot", of which he forlorn saw the verification of it. He so claims to claim been revealed 4 planets command dependable of the windows on back-to-back the object. Whilst looking at these planets, he saw what looked like a plane, or inexperienced strange flying object move obliquely his line of vision. Report second he saw the extraordinarily or (dense object) reply, forlorn this time in the perverse way and at a cultivate room. The object besides probably traveled to the "moon" and that it was located such that he may possibly see command the check over universe "a fantastic cleft". He was very overwhelmed to see that put away the cleft he may possibly see what he took to be buildings. He so found himself verification in his armchair in the living room of his loft. He cannot memorize how he got acquaint with or how hope for this incident lasted for."Source: Malcolm Robinson, SPI UK""Roger Corman's Cult Classics: Humanoids from the Grave [Blu-ray]""Drive-In Uphold Feature: Production of the Humanoids/War Surrounded by the Planets""The THREAT: Plummeting the Private Weird and wonderful Catalog"
The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal(CSICOP) was founded in the spring of 1976, during a meeting of the American Humanist Association in Buffalo, New York. The impetus for the group's form-ation had been provided a year earlier by the publication of "Objections to Astrology" by Paul Kurtz, professor of philosophy at the State University ofNew York at Buffalo. The manifesto had been signed by 186 scientists, in-cluding 18 Nobel prizewinners, who feared that the public was confusing astronomy and astrology.Today Kurtz is chairman of the loosely knit international organization, whichholds annual meetings and publishes a 25,000-circulation quarterly, "The Skeptical Inquirer." The journal is devoted to articles debunking psychokinesistelepathy,clairvoyance, and other psychic claims, the Loch Ness Monster, astro-logy and UFOs. CSICOP Fellows include science writer Isaac Asimov, astronomerCarl Sagan, Nobel physicist Murray Gell-Mann, and James Randi, recent recipientof a "genius grant" awarded by the MacArthur Foundation.The UFO subcommittee is led by Philip J. Klass ("UFOs--Identified","UFOs Ex-plained",and "UFOs, the Public Decieved"), James Oberg ("UFOs & Outer SpaceMysteries"),and Robert Sheaffer ("The UFO Verdict"). The subcommittee con-sists of about two dozen members who operate as an informal network, exchang-ing articles about UFOs for information and comment. Some members make them-selves available for local media appearances to counteract what Klass calls"the popular view of UFOs as extraterrestrial spaceships.""We prefer to have skeptics, of course," says Klass, "but we don't requireanyone to take an oath of allegiance saying they don't believe in flyingsaucers. Basically, we're a mutual education circuit."
The other day I wrote about the secret deal MUFON's former leadership had signed with a supposedly "shadowy" Las Vegas businessman that would have allowed said businessman to have exclusive access to any and all physical evidence that MUFON's "STAR Team" might nab from the site of a UFO crash or alien encounter ("How Much Is UFO Evidence Worth?", 2/7/2012). It turned out, in fact, that the STAR Team rapid response concept was created by MUFON at the behest of this businessman. All this for just 672,000!
Easy to see why rank-and-file MUFONers were upset with the management for inking that deal. Why would we all risk our necks to secure UFO evidence only to have the MUFON high command hand it over to a shadowy Las Vegas businessman, who would place it in on a solid gold display stand at the center of his vast collection of beautiful and rare artifacts that only he can afford to own?
Well, I did a little more research and the picture started come into clearer focus... This businessman actually owns a hotel chain and an aerospace company, and so naturally he wants to combine his two great loves and build the first space hotel (see image below).
They call it a "space hotel," but it looks like giant marshmallows. Good luck with that.
Good thing he doesn't own an aerospace company and a dog walking service.
Now, you may be thinking that I'm talking about Sir Richard Branson, the brash, charismatic owner of Virgin this, that and the other thing, but I'm not. It's true that Sir Richard also owns both a hotel chain and an aerospace company, and wants to open the first space hotel, but I am talking about the other rich guy who owns a hotel chain and an aerospace company and wants to open a space hotel. I know, it's ridiculous that there are two of them, but apparently it's harder than you think to be a truly original and unique rich guy.
Anyway, let's take a closer look at "our "rich guy, and why he wants exclusive access to MUFON's crashed saucers and alien corpses. He owns a hotel chain called "Budget Suites of America," and Budget Suites of America invites you to "relax and unwind in your own personal apartment whether you are a family relocating to a new city, a business traveler, vacationer, or just making a new start." If I was vacationing with my family in Las Vegas, Dallas, Phoenix or San Antonio, I would consider staying at a Budget Suite of America. Ditto if I was "making a new start." But we're not talking about Las Vegas, Dallas, Phoenix or San Antonio, are we? We're talking about a cold, dark, barren, lifeless void. Okay, not much difference there, I admit, but you get my point.
Imagine this orbiting the earth.
This worries me, for obvious reasons. If I'm spending my life savings to take a vacation in low orbit around the earth. do I want to stay in a place called Budget Suite? I think you know the answer to that one.
But this could be the key...
What if Mr. Budget Suites knows that space aliens are vastly superior to us in the intergalactic hospitality business? Wouldn't it make sense that he would want their knowledge and technology to himself, so that he could make "his "space hotel "the" earth orbit destination?
Shame on you, MUFON management, for playing right into his hands. How many free weeks in space did he offer you?
Credit: project-ufo.blogspot.com
